Ernst & Young employee death: Centre investigating claims of exploitative work environment
This came in response to allegations by a parent of an employee of the accounting firm that their daughter had died in July due to work-related stress.
The Union government on Thursday announced that it is investigating allegations of an exploitative work environment at Ernst & Young’s India offices.
This came on the heels of allegations of an unsafe and exploitative work environment levelled by Anita Augustine, the mother of 26-year-old Anna Sebastian Perayil, an employee of the accounting firm in Pune, who passed away in July.
In a letter to Ernst & Young India Chairman Rajiv Memani, Augustine attributed her daughter’s death to “backbreaking work” conditions at the company, reported the Business Standard.
Shobha Karandlaje, the Union minister of state for Labour and Employment, said on Thursday that an investigation into the allegations of exploitative work environment at the firm is underway. “We are committed to ensuring justice and labour ministry has officially taken up the complaint,” said in a social media post.
Deeply saddened by the tragic loss of Anna Sebastian Perayil. A thorough investigation into the allegations of an unsafe and exploitative work environment is underway. We are committed to ensuring justice & @LabourMinistry has officially taken up the complaint.@mansukhmandviya https://t.co/1apsOm594d
— Shobha Karandlaje (@ShobhaBJP) September 19, 2024
Karandlaje’s statement on X was made in response to a post by BJP leader and former Union minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar, who shared a news article about Perayil and described her death as “disturbing on many levels”.
“I request Govt of India…to investigate these allegations made by the mother of unsafe and exploitative work environment that claimed the life of young, full of future Anna Sebastian Perayil,” Chandrasekhar wrote.
Augustine had said in her letter that Anna “would return to her room utterly exhausted, sometimes collapsing on the bed without even changing her clothes, only to be bombarded with messages asking for more reports”.
Augustine had added: “She was putting in her best efforts, working very hard to meet the deadlines”.
On Wednesday, Ernst & Young India said in a statement that Perayil’s “promising career was cut short in this tragic manner is an irreparable loss for all of us”.
“While no measure can compensate for the loss experienced by the family, we have provided all assistance as we always do in such times of distress and will continue to do so,” it added.
The company noted that Perayil worked for SR Batliboi, a member of the Ernst & Young Global network of accounting firms.
